Dead: "Original Gill Man", Ben Chapman

I know I don't write much about old-timey horror movies here because ... well, because I don't really like them. But I'm saddened by the death of Ben Chapman, the man who played the Gill Man in the 1954 3-D classic, The Creature From the Black Lagoon. It's not because he turned in a stellar performance (he wasn't even credited and didn't do any of the underwater shots, which were performed by a stuntman), but because I met Ben at a horror convention 6 years ago and he couldn't have been sweeter. (My Buffy-nut friend Amanda actually knew him from growing up in Hawaii, where Ben lived. Her mom taught him how to use a computer or something.)

The actor was six-foot-five and a former Marine, and was a staple of the convention circuit. He will be missed. Here's an interview with the actor with some great clips...